Report of the President's Commission on the Assassination of President John F. Kennedy

Recommendations

The Commission’s review of the provisions for Presidential protection at the time of President Kennedy’s trip to Dallas demonstrates the need for substantial improvements. Since the assassination, the Secret Service and the Department of the Treasury have properly taken the initiative in reexamining major aspects of Presidential protection, with many changes already made and others contemplated, some in response to the Commission’s questions and informal suggestions. The Commission proceeds to make specific recommendations concerning making assassination a Federal crime, establishing a Cabinet-level committee or National Security Council mechanism to oversee protective activities, and clarifying the responsibilities for Presidential protection.

Assassination a Federal Crime

At the time of the assassination there was no Federal criminal jurisdiction over the killing of President Kennedy. While conspiracy to injure a Federal officer had long been a Federal crime, murder of the President had never been covered by Federal law, so once it became reasonably clear the killing was the act of a single person, the State of Texas had exclusive jurisdiction. The Commission finds it anomalous that Congress has legislated in other ways touching upon the safety of the Chief Executive without making an attack on the President a crime; threatening harm to the President and advocacy of overthrow by assassination are already Federal offenses, as is murder of certain other Federal officers, and the Secret Service is authorized to arrest without warrant for certain offenses. The Commission agrees with the Secret Service that it should be authorized to make arrests without warrant for all offenses within its jurisdiction. There have been multiple prior efforts to make assassination a Federal crime, particularly after the assassination of President McKinley and the attempt on President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt, including 1902 bills that passed both Houses but failed when the Senate refused to accept the conference report, and bills introduced immediately after President Kennedy’s assassination. The Commission recommends Congress adopt legislation punishing the murder, manslaughter, attempt, conspiracy, kidnapping, or assault of the President, Vice President, or other officer next in the order of succession, the President-elect, and the Vice-President-elect, whether or not the act is committed in the performance of official duties. Such a statute would also insure that any suspects arrested would be Federal prisoners, subject to Federal protection, and that the investigation would be conducted by Federal law enforcement officials.

Committee of Cabinet Officers

As Government has become more complex, agencies other than the Secret Service have become involved in phases of the overall problem of protecting national leaders, with the FBI serving as the major domestic investigating agency and the CIA having primary responsibility for collecting intelligence overseas. The Commission believes it is necessary to improve cooperation among these agencies and to emphasize that Presidential protection is a matter of broad national concern. The Commission suggests consideration be given to assigning to a Cabinet-level committee or the National Security Council the responsibility to review and oversee the protective activities of the Secret Service and other Federal agencies assisting in safeguarding the President, with the committee to include the Secretary of the Treasury and the Attorney General. The foremost assignment of such a Committee would be to insure that the maximum resources of the Federal Government are fully engaged in Presidential protection by defining responsibilities clearly and overseeing their execution, and it would be able to provide guidance in defining the general nature of domestic and foreign dangers to Presidential security and act as a final review board for improvements in advance detection of potential threats. The Commission observes that the Secret Service has functioned largely as an informal part of the White House staff, limiting its practical influence over security precautions surrounding Presidential activities, and that a Cabinet-level committee actively concerned with these problems could discuss them more effectively with the President.

Responsibilities for Presidential Protection

The assignment of responsibility for protecting the President to an agency of the Department of the Treasury was largely a historical accident. The Secret Service was organized as a division of the Department of the Treasury in 1865 to deal with counterfeiting, and in 1894, while investigating a plot to assassinate President Cleveland, the Service assigned a small protective detail of agents to the White House. Secret Service men then accompanied the President and his family to their vacation home in Massachusetts, with special details protecting him in Washington, on trips, and at special functions. These informal and part-time arrangements led to more systematic protection in 1902, after the assassination of President McKinley, when the Secret Service, then the only Federal investigative agency, assumed full-time responsibility for the safety of the President. Since that time, the Secret Service has had and exercised responsibility for the physical protection of the President and for the preventive investigation of potential threats against him.